


Runs in the Family

by benwisehart



Category: Avengers (Comics), Marvel 616, Young Avengers (Comics)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Avengers Disassembled, But I'm not going to clutter up their character tags with minor appearances, F/M, Family Bonding, Fix-It, Gen, Grief/Mourning, Juvie, Most of the pre-disassembled Avengers roster also appears, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, POV Third Person Omniscient, Simultaneously trying to fix canon and ignoring it altogether, What-If
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-08-25
Updated: 2019-01-20
Packaged: 2019-07-02 07:05:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 13,868
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15791457
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/benwisehart/pseuds/benwisehart
Summary: Starting a family is always a leap of faith. Sometimes relationships are hard. Sometimes your children turn out to be pieces of a demon's soul. Sometimes you lose everything. Sometimes you can't put it back together, but sometimes you can, even if it's different from before. Sometimes, you remember that love is worth it.OR: In which Jan never mentions Billy and Tommy to Wanda by the pool, and everyone is better-off for it.





	1. Chapter One

**Author's Note:**

> bitter fix-it fics about the way marvel destroyed wanda and vision's relationship? in MY ao3? it's more likely than you think
> 
> I've always been really interested in the fact that the catalyst that set off Avengers Disassembled (and by extension, House of M, M Day, and all the other terrible things that followed) essentially boiled down to Jan accidentally mentioning Wanda's kids to her and triggering her memories of them. That's a horrible way to remember that your children are gone. We also know that Vision was working on the program that went on to create the Young Avengers at the time this happened, and by extension had just learned of Billy and Tommy's existence. I firmly believe he would have told Wanda about them if he'd had the chance, so this fic is my take on how things would have been different. Marvel should hire me to write a "what-if" series :)
> 
> I wasn't sure if I was going to post this, and this first chapter ended up being quite different from what I'd originally planned, but I hope you manage to get some enjoyment out of it!

Vision thinks it was Tommy who woke up first. He’s always been the more restless of the twins, but when Tommy doesn’t sleep, Billy doesn’t sleep, and Billy has a pair of lungs that would put a banshee to shame. It’s just past three in the morning, but Vision is used to this routine now. He’d phased carefully out of bed, letting Wanda’s arm fall to the mattress and hoping it wasn’t enough to wake her, before ducking over to the nursery to tend to the two crying babies. 

He scoops up Billy first, lifting him against his chest and patting him, swaying back and forth as he does so. “What’s this, now,” he murmurs, still patting repeatedly, as his solar gem begins to emit a low hum. He discovered the frequency only a few days ago, and its soothing effects are immediate. Billy quiets down, and Vision leans over the crib to collect Tommy. “Isn’t that better?” Vision asks, balancing one twin on each arm. “You’ll wake your mother with all this noise. I suppose that’s what you want, isn’t it?”

It doesn’t look like either of them need changing yet, but they might be hungry even though Wanda only fed them a few hours ago. He’s especially loath to wake her when she was sleeping so peacefully—a rare sight these days. Whatever the boys’ problem is, he’ll handle it. They still seem restless, although they’re no longer crying; Vision rocks them for a few more minutes while they settle. He’ll warm up a bottle in a minute.

“Vizh?”

Wanda’s voice is drowsy and it makes Vision turn to see her, leaning on the door to the nursery in a shirt and underwear. 

“I’m sorry, I had hoped they wouldn’t wake you,” Vision says.

“We both know there was no chance of that.” Wanda yawns, bleary-eyed. “They’re just relentless, aren’t they?” she says, coming over and bumping her shoulder affectionately against Vision’s. “You won’t let Mommy and Daddy rest for five minutes, will you?” she demands, tickling Billy’s forehead. 

“I was about to feed them,” Vision says. “I think they may be hungry.”

“Maybe,” Wanda says, covering another yawn before wrapping her arms around Vision’s waist and burying her face in his shoulder, still half asleep. “Maybe they just wanted a cuddle. It’s a big, scary world out there. Look, they’re already calming down down,” she adds, awe in her voice. “Here, why don’t I take one…”

Vision moves to pass Billy to her, but the moment he starts to leave Vision’s arms, he lets out a noise of protest, causing Wanda to laugh. 

“Oh, I see, you’d rather stay with Daddy, then,” she chuckles, taking her hands away in mock exasperation.

“I think he’s just comfortable,” Vision says, his voice quiet.

“Of course he is,” Wanda says. “Because of you.”

Vision looks down again, overcome with awe at the two little miracles in his arms. Wanda does too, over his shoulder. Two shining balls of _life_ that they created together, that would not exist in this world without them. Wanda rests her palm on top of Tommy’s forehead and wraps her other arm around her husband. For his part, Vision doesn’t say much. It’s hard to find the words, but maybe that’s okay. This is their family, their little corner of the world, where they understand each other. Nothing will ever take this from them.

 

* * *

 

Wanda was returning from the pool. There was something to be said for having a day off in between saving the world every once in a while, she thought, slinging her towel over her shoulders as she made her way back to the mansion. Sitting under the sun, finishing that book she’d been reading…she needed this, especially amongst the chaos of their day to day lives. 

She was just leaving her room after changing back into her civilian clothes when Vision suddenly appeared from the wall she was passing, causing her to start. “Vizh!” she said, laughing. “You scared me.”

“I’m sorry.” Vision seemed uneasy, which wasn’t like him. “How was your afternoon?” he added, inclining his head slightly in the direction of the pool. 

“Oh, you have no idea how much I needed it,” Wanda said, stretching. It was nice talking with Jan, too. They rarely had the time to socialise outside of official Avengers business these days. “What about you? How’s that project you’ve been working on?”

Vision tensed. That was what he had come to speak to her about, but…it felt wrong, on so many levels, especially on what was otherwise such a mundane day. “The Avengers Fail-Safe Program,” he said slowly. “It is…a working title.”

“That’s right,” Wanda said, trying to remember if he’d told her the name of it yet. She didn’t think he had. “You still haven’t told me what it’s for.” With a title like that, it sounded particularly grim, but she had learned to give him the benefit of the doubt.

“That was what I wanted to talk to you about,” Vision said, at last. “Do you—I would—Wanda, do you have a moment?”

The tone in his voice gave Wanda pause, and she suddenly looked him over with more care, sensing his discomfort. “Of course—Vision, what’s the matter? Should we call the others?” Whatever the program was for, if he had detected some kind of danger—

“No, nothing like that,” Vision reassured her. “This is something personal. You will understand when I show you…I hope.”

Wanda gave a confused sort of smile. “Is this really to do with your program?”

“Yes, but it will be easier if I show you. Will you walk with me?”

Wanda linked her arm with his without saying a word. Something was clearly eating at him, and she hated seeing him in such a state. For Vision’s part, all he felt was trepidation, and a great feeling of guilt for what he was about to do.

“My intentions were to create a program that would monitor news and media outlets in case information about new heroes were to surface,” he explained slowly, as they made their way back toward Vision’s room. “I had hoped to eventually identify a number of younger individuals capable of replacing the Avengers in the event something were to happen to all of us. We would be able to provide them with training and guidance, ideally before such an event were to take place, but in any case, it would give them something to rally around.”

“What did you think was going to happen?” Wanda asked, squeezing his arm in amusement. “One too many world-ending disasters gets the better of us?”

“I believe in being prepared for any eventuality,” Vision said, sounding put-upon, but he relaxed a little. “In any case, my plan was for most of the heroes included in the program to be people the Avengers were already familiar with, people we could trust. Then in the last couple of weeks, my detection algorithms picked something up. Two somethings, as it happens.”

They had reached the door to Vision’s room now, and he hesitated only briefly before opening it. These days, it was little more than an empty room with a number of monitors and a chair on one side. Certainly nothing to suggest that anyone lived out of here. Most of his own personal artefacts had been left behind when he stopped living with Wanda. Vision had still been devoid of emotions and sentimentality at the time, and since then…truthfully, he didn’t spend much time in here. He didn’t see much point in decorating. 

If Wanda thought the state of his room odd, she said nothing. Instead, she looked up at Vision. “By ‘two somethings’, am I to assume you mean it picked up two young heroes?” she asked.

Vision hesitated. _Two young heroes_. It was a nice thought.

“There have been more than two, although a few were unsubstantiated. But there are two that I’d…like you to take a look at, if I may.”

He was able to interface remotely with the computers in his room; seemingly without prompting, the holographic display that Tony had installed flickered to life across the wall, covered with various images and video. Vision left Wanda’s side to approach the display, enlarging one of the entries. 

“This young man’s name is Thomas Shepherd. He’s fifteen years old,” he began.

Wanda followed him over, although she folded her arms while looking up at the screen. Vision stole a glance, waiting to see…something. Recognition, perhaps? Instead, all he saw was simple curiosity. “He’s a speedster,” she commented, noticing some video footage as Vision enlarged Tommy’s profile, showing a short teen with white hair zipping around on screen. 

“Yes,” Vision said, turning his gaze back to the screen. “The program picked him up following an incident a few weeks ago. His speed manifests itself in explosive tendencies, with culminated in his school being vaporised.”

Wanda turned sharply when he said this, looking alarmed, but Vision quickly reassured her. “The public was shaken but nobody was harmed, and Thomas turned himself in shortly afterward. The footage up there was taken during his trial; he was just admitted to juvie.”

“What kind of juvie could hold a child with that kind of power?” Wanda asked incredulously, thinking of Pietro. Those kinds of powers were _incredibly_ dangerous in the wrong hands, as Thomas had already demonstrated, intentionally or otherwise. 

“I needed to hack into some of their systems, but…” Vision paused. “It appears to be equipped with power dampeners and Mandroid armour. I have not been able to determine where they found that kind of tech.”

“Surely there must be a better way,” Wanda said, shuddering. “He’s just a boy. I can talk to Pietro, I’m sure he could be a good influence on him, teach him to control his powers…”

“I have been monitoring the situation, and had plans to intervene,” Vision agreed, and then paused, watching Wanda’s face again, waiting. _Waiting_. “I wanted to show you one of the others, too,” he continued, closing Tommy’s profile and opening one of the others. “This is William Kaplan, also fifteen years old. I was only able to find him because—”

“Hold on,” Wanda said, touching one of the images to make it larger. “I know this boy.”

Vision froze. “You know him?”

There was a thoughtful frown on Wanda’s face, but it quickly disappeared into a smile. “Yes, I’m sure of it. I met him outside the mansion a few weeks ago…I think he was being bullied at school,” she added, her smile faltering. She had only been thinking about him this morning; something about him had stuck with her. “He looks a lot like Thomas, doesn’t he?”

“Virtually identical,” Vision said softly, bringing up another photo of Tommy for comparison. Even with Tommy’s white hair, it was impossible to miss. “Facial recognition detected them as a match; it’s why I found William in the first place, after it had already found Thomas. I have reason to believe he was involved in an incident at his school with a boy named John Kesler. He put him in the hospital, actually.”

Wanda covered her mouth. As soon as Vision had said it, she recognised the name. _Stand your ground, and all the Keslers of the world can’t touch you_ , that was what she had told him. She hadn’t considered what that might have meant. “What are his powers?” she asked, turning to Vision urgently. She didn’t believe for a second that Billy was capable of deliberately hurting someone, but if he had caused this by accident, then he needed her help. 

Vision hesitated before continuing. “They are…not unlike yours, Wanda. Although I haven’t had the chance to find out for sure, he seems to have some form of energy manipulation. That’s not all; he and Thomas were born on the same day.”

“So they’re twins,” Wanda said, like that was obvious. She had already figured as much, after seeing their faces. Despite everything, she gave a faint smile. “Reminds me of another pair of twins I know.”

Vision did not seem amused. If anything, he became more sullen from her attempt at a joke. “They were born in different states, more than twenty miles apart, within minutes of each other. I considered that one may have been somehow swapped with another child when they were babies, but neither of their hospital records showed a twin. They were both single births.”

“There must be some explanation,” Wanda said, trying to figure out where he was leading her. “Two mutants born on the same day, who look almost identical? That can’t be a coincidence.”

“It’s…not.”

Wanda had never thought that Vision’s voice was robotic, but it had been a while since she heard him say anything that struck her as quite so fundamentally _human_. He sounded tired, and it gave her pause. Vision held her gaze, something immeasurably sad settled across his face. He hated this. Hated every moment of what he was about to do. He used to wish that he could simply forget the way that she had, but with the situation at hand, he could no longer ignore it. 

“What do you mean?” Wanda prompted apprehensively.

Tentatively, Vision extended a hand to take hers and sat down on one of the chairs, prompting her to sit on the one opposite. She still looked bemused, so Vision pressed on. 

“Wanda, my darling…” His tone was quiet. Reverent, even. It felt like the last time he would ever say her name. “I owe you an apology, for what I’ve done, and for what I am about to do.”

Wanda stiffened, not quite responding to the touch of his hand. “Vision, what are you talking about?”

“I have been keeping something from you, we all have, and it is time you took it back.”

He had hoped that seeing the boys would be enough to jog Wanda’s memory, so he wouldn’t have to say it. The last thing he wanted was to draw from his own memory banks. For a moment, he wondered if Agatha’s spell could only be lifted by Agatha herself. 

Then the colour drained out of Wanda’s face and Vision knew. They both knew.

“The children,” she said softly, 

Wanda snatched her hand away.

“Master Pandemonium,” she said, jumping to her feet. “He’d taken them, I remember…I remember everything. Vision, what happened? I didn’t—Why didn’t I—” Wanda cut herself off with a strained choking sound. “All this time…”

“Agatha Harkness performed a spell which suppressed them from your memory,” Vision stood, but he faced the screen to avoid meeting her eyes. “We—the Avengers deemed it to be the safest option.”

“ _Safest_?” Wanda cried, her voice wracked with disbelief. For a second, Vision thought he saw a glimmer of red around her fingertips, but if there had been, it quickly disappeared when Wanda ran her hands over her face. “I feel sick.”

“Perhaps you should sit down,” Vision said, awkwardly extending a hand, but Wanda barely responded, her whole body stiff as a board. 

“Don’t.” Wanda turned away from him, struggling to control the nausea clawing its way up her body. The image was seared into her memory now—her sons’ beautiful faces, contorted and monstrous. Pandemonium had captured them and incorporated them into his body like some kind of sick carnival show. She kept a hand covering her mouth. All this time, the entire team had known. _Vision_ had known. And they had let her carry in in ignorance—not out of mercy, but out of fear. Fear of what she might do. Well, they were right to be afraid. 

“Wanda?” Vision asked, bringing her back to reality, at least for a moment. “Are you—”

“I want to know exactly what happened,” she demanded. “After I passed out. What did Agatha do to me?”

Vision hesitated. He remembered the events with infallible clarity, of course, and it was not something he wished to share with her. “After Mephisto came to reclaim—” He could not bring himself to say their names. “—what was taken from him, Agatha surmised that the pieces of his soul which had become the twins would still be connected to you. Removing your memory of them caused them to disperse and destroy Mephisto, at least for a short time.”

“Just like that.” Wanda still could not look at him, could barely keep herself standing in place. “And afterward? You just decided to pretend it never happened?”

“At the time it seemed…logical,” Vision said, choosing his words carefully. He still hated them. “Wanda, you know what I was, back when it…when it happened.”

Wanda knew he was right. She knew, and yet his words still hurt, made her boil with anger. It must have been nice, being able to look at it so logically. “What about since then? All this time we’ve been together, and you didn’t tell me.”

“I am telling you now.” Vision tentatively reached out again. “Wanda, I have wanted to tell you for so long, but I couldn’t bring myself to. You seemed so happy.”

“And it was a lie.” Wanda did not pull away from his touch this time, but she didn’t react for god-knows how long. When she finally did, it was to look back at the screen, where William Kaplan and Thomas Shepherd’s pictures were still on the display. She stared at it for a while, trying to find…something. It was obvious now why Vision had wanted to show her this. “They’re too old, Vision. They’re teenagers.”

“I know.”

“They can’t be ours.”

“I know.”

Wanda realised she was crying. Perhaps she had been for a while. 

_So many people_. Vision, Pietro, Agatha, the entire team. Their _family_. Every single one of them had deemed her incapable of handling the truth and better off living a lie. There was a part of her that wanted them to feel her pain, wanted to tear town the walls that surrounded them in a hail of scarlet and demand to know _why_. Who gave them the _right_?

Then she looked at those two boys on the screen again, and all she wanted to do was help them.

“I need time to think about think about this,” she said at last, bringing herself to meet Vision’s gaze. “I don’t know if I can be here right now.” 

Vision paused before letting go of Wanda’s arm, and he realised as he did so that he did not want her to go. It felt like if she left, he wouldn’t see her again. “We can talk about this later…whenever you feel ready.” 

Wanda brushed a hand across her face, calmed her breathing, and wondered if she should say thank you. She didn’t, though. “Yes,” she said at last, lingering for another moment before brushing past him in the direction of the door. There was more that needed to be spoken, but she could not say it, not right now.

Standing in place, Vision watched her leave, trying to keep the twisted feeling inside him in check. Did that go well? In a way, it felt worse than he’d expected. He could have handled simple anger; it would have been straightforward. Emotions, though, were not simple, a fact he had long-since accepted. It can be easy to withdraw. 

He sank into his chair again, looking back up at the screen, before turning off the display. 

What had he been afraid of when he had created the program? More importantly, what had he been looking for? If he were simply afraid of something happening to the Avengers, he would have gone to Tony and Steve, maybe compiled a list of their contacts and former members to be notified in the event of a disaster. What was the benefit of trying to find a list of complete strangers? Children, even. 

These were all important questions, and Vision was a rational man. At the time, he hadn’t thought much of it. It had seemed the most logical solution; their generation would not last forever, and the sooner they found the next, the better. 

Perhaps, though, it had seemed that way because he was missing something. He didn’t deliberately set out trying to find Thomas and William—until a few days ago, he’d had no reason to think that Agatha may have been wrong in her assessment of them—but he knew then what he had lost, and he had nobody to share that with, not even Wanda. The Avengers Fail-Safe Program had given him an outlet for that, one way or another.

Did it really make a difference if Billy Kaplan and Tommy Shepherd were who he thought they were? Vision would have needed to tell Wanda the truth eventually. Getting her hopes up in this way only to chance having them taken away seemed unimaginably cruel. 

Then he wondered if maybe it wasn’t Wanda’s hopes that had needed protecting.

 

* * *

 

Wanda took a few days’ leave from the mansion, although she didn’t give a reason why. She wasn’t quite ready to confront Steve and the others yet. Her original intention was to visit Pietro, but she decided almost immediately that she couldn’t bear the thought of seeing him. No, there was only one person she needed to speak with before this went any further.

Even though Wanda had not called ahead, Agatha did not seem surprised to see her. That was just her way, though. She opened the door wide, inviting her inside. “Wanda, dear, it’s been too long. Why don’t you come in?”

Pulling her coat around herself, Wanda stepped through the door. Agatha had never been particularly nurturing, but she’d always been a source of support in her life, and one whose input Wanda valued. “Thank you, Agatha,” she murmured, glancing around the room she found herself in. Agatha’s home was small but inviting, and Wanda could spot a few loose items around which indicated the practice of witchcraft. 

The old woman made her way over to a stovetop, where an iron kettle was boiling. It made Wanda smile; Agatha had always been a traditionalist. “How about some tea?” she asked, already getting out a second cup. “Then you can tell me what’s on your mind.”

“I’d like that,” Wanda said, still quiet. She leaned against the kitchen counter, watching her former mentor closely. 

Agatha added some tea leaves to Wanda’s cup. “I’m sure you’ve missed my herbal blend,” she continued, pouring the water. “Do you remember?” Steam billowed from the tea as she handed it to Wanda, and Wanda inhaled it deeply, holding the cup through her sleeves in both hands. 

“Of course.” Wanda smiled, but kept her gaze fixed on the cup. “I tried to make it for myself while I was pregnant, but I never got it quite right,” she said, raising her eyes to watch Agatha through the steam as she took a sip. 

If the old woman was surprised by Wanda’s statement, she didn’t show it, at least not immediately. It took a moment for her to respond, setting down her cup. “So you do remember,” she said at last. 

“I remember everything,” Wanda said with a sigh, putting down her tea as well. “Billy and Tommy, Master Pandemonium…Mephisto.”

“Your husband told you?”

“Someone had to,” Wanda replied stiffly, “eventually.”

Up until now, Wanda had felt genuinely calm. Truly, she came here planning nothing more than a civil conversation with an old friend, but as the words left her mouth, she felt that rush of anger return. 

Agatha, for her part, remained as calm as ever. “Dear child…you must understand the kind of position we were in.”

“I am _not_ a child.” Wanda forced herself to settle. One way or another, those boys still needed her. “And you had no right to do what you did. My memories were all I had left. You had no right to take my children from me.”

“Take them from you?” Agatha asked, incredulous. “Wanda, I took nothing from you but pain. You never had children. They were not _real_.”

“Are these not real?” Wanda hitched up her shirt to show the thin white lines that carrying twins had left her with. “All that pain I went through to bring them into this world—was that not real? When I felt their life—when I held them in my arms—how was any of it not real?”

“Sit,” Agatha placated, picking up their teacups and carrying them over to the table. 

Wanda did not want to sit, but she did so anyway, although she didn’t take her tea again. “I didn’t come hear to fight, Agatha. I want to know why.”

“If the Vision told you everything, then you already know why,” Agatha said. “The spell you used to turn two pieces of Mephisto’s soul into children connected you to him. Erasing your memories was necessary to defeat him, by severing that connection and causing the fragments to disperse in the process.”

_Necessary, necessary_. “Was keeping the truth from me afterwards also necessary?” Wanda asked, meeting Agatha’s gaze. 

“Wanda,” Agatha said slowly, “you had just had your entire reality turned upside down. The creatures you thought were your children had disappeared. I wanted to spare you the—”

“You were afraid of what I might do,” Wanda cut her off. “Don’t lie to me, woman.”

“Very well.” Agatha’s tone hardened. “You were born with the power to manipulate reality itself, and you did nothing to earn that power. You had just manipulated it on such a level as to convince yourself that you had created life itself, and all of that was falling apart around you. You’re right, I didn’t know what you would do, and I had a duty to protect those around you.”

“And I suppose having everyone I ever trusted just pretend that nothing was wrong, _that_ was going to keep my grip on reality in check,” Wanda cried. “What would you have done if Vision hadn’t told me? If someone slipped up, or I remembered on my own? I lost my babies, and I couldn’t even mourn them!” 

“Wanda,” Agatha said, her tone measured and careful, “please don’t make the mistake of thinking my words or my actions stemmed from indifference to you or your situation. You have always been like a daughter to me—but you must understand, Thomas and William _were not real children_. They were pieces of a demon given physical form by your wish to be a mother, which—”

“I’m starting to get sick of people telling me what is and isn’t real,” Wanda said sharply. “Maybe their souls started out as pieces of Mephisto’s, I don’t know. Perhaps that made them vulnerable to him, but they were _alive_ , Agatha, I know what a human soul feels like. I could never have imagined that, not in a million years. They weren’t created from nothing. They were living things born of our love—what is that, if not a child?”

There was a split second after Wanda finished speaking before the teacup in front of her suddenly shattered, causing Agatha to startle.

Wanda stared in surprise at the rapidly cooling liquid as it spread across the table, but she kept her composure. “You were wrong about what they were. Everyone believed you, but you were _wrong_. My children were alive then—and they are alive now.”

Even as she said it, she felt the pit in her stomach grow. Until right now, she hadn’t realised how apprehensive she was at the thought of seeing Billy and Tommy. If they weren’t who Vision thought they were—well, she would have to face the reality of losing them a second time…and if they _were,_ what could she ever say to them? They had families of their own, she couldn’t compromise that for the sake of her own grief. 

Agatha, on the other hand, was confused by Wanda’s words, but Wanda had no interest in clarifying or explaining anything to her, certainly not right now. It didn’t matter if Agatha thought she was delusional or hysterical. 

Without apologising for breaking the cup, Wanda got to her feet. “Thank you for the tea.”

“Wanda, what have you done?” 

“I’ve done nothing.” Wanda folded her arms. “But I will be going now. I’m sure I’ll see you again.”

 

* * *

 

Wanda had been gone from the mansion for two days, and Vision had so far resisted his desire to contact her. Still, the waiting was unbearable. He would never be so callous as to wish for some disaster as to require the Avengers assistance, but it didn’t suit him having nothing to do, especially since he was not currently working on the Avengers Fail-Safe Program.

It was late; the rest of the team and even Jarvis had gone to bed, leaving Vision with the main living room to himself. He was seated on one of the couches, deep in contemplation with some jazz music playing softly in the background. He’d always enjoyed jazz; while he thought all music was a unique form of self-expression, there was something about the swing and the improv that appealed to him on a deeply personal level. Right now, he felt like he needed that, with everything that was happening. 

“Vizh?”

The sound of his nickname caused caused him to startle, bringing him back to reality. It wasn’t often that people managed to sneak up on him. Vision glanced in the direction of the voice to see Wanda hovering in the door of the room, wringing her hands. She was visibly tired, and her eyes and nose were a little red, as though she’d recently been crying. “Wanda,” Vision said, standing and turning off the music. “When did you get back?”

“Just now,” Wanda said, entering the room but still hanging near its doorway. She hesitated. “May I join you?”

“Always.” Vision gestured for her to come over, sitting back down on the couch, and Wanda joined him there. She sat on the other side at first, leaving some distance between them. She didn’t want to push his boundaries.

“I went to see Agatha,” she said at last.

“I see.” Vision paused. “What did she say?”

Wanda sighed, before tentatively shifting closer to him. Vision didn’t hesitate before extending an arm, and she shuffled in close to his side, tucking her head into his shoulder while he put his arm across her back.

They stayed like that for a moment, not saying a word. Vision wrapped his arms around her, and she curled into him, holding tightly like he was the only thing keeping her tethered there.

When she finally spoke, it was not to answer his question. “I shouldn’t have reacted the way I did when you told me. Vision, I can’t…I can’t imagine what you have been going through. I’m so sorry.”

Vision looked down at her. “You have nothing to be sorry for,” he murmured honestly. 

“I think I do,” Wanda said. “I was so _angry_ , but that’s not your fault. I’ve only had to deal with this for two days, but you’ve been alone all this time. I just wish I could have been there for you. You lost them too.”

At this, Vision stared at the ground. “I did,” he said at last. 

It was odd. His memories of those events, when Pandemonium came, were crystal clear. Better even. That kind of recollection was both a blessing and a curse—he remembered everything, the good and the bad. He remembered the pain of all the lives he had ever failed to save, but there was also happiness, too. He remembered how happy he felt the day they got married; the excitement of carrying Wanda over the threshold when they bought their house; the indescribable joy the day that they became parents…

And yet, on that day they lost everything, he had felt _nothing_. Everything that allowed him to feel joy, or sorrow, or grief, all of that had been stripped away, leaving him nothing more than a shell of what he once was. When he finally came back properly, months later, he had already compartmentalised that loss. Wanda had no memories, and everyone else had moved on. The Avengers had accepted the “truth”; Billy and Tommy were nothing more than a figment of Wanda’s imagination, another oddity in the long line of strange events that made up their lives. Vision had accepted that too. Maybe it made it easier, at least at first. 

He noticed Wanda had raised her head to look at him, her expression soft and gentle as she reached up. It wasn’t until she was brushing her thumb across his cheekbone that Vision realised he had cried. 

“We were happy, weren’t we?” she asked softly, like she could scarcely believe it anymore.

“We were,” Vision promised, reaching up to take her hand. “We were the best.”

“We didn’t deserve this.”

“No, we didn’t.”

With a sigh, Wanda returned her head to his shoulder, staring straight ahead. Could they ever go back to what they had? After everything that had happened? Honestly, she didn’t know that they could, but she knew that that wasn’t fair, to either of them. 

“Do you suppose…” Wanda hesitated, trying to find the words. “They started out as pieces of Mephisto’s soul, I think I’ve accepted that, but that’s not what they were when they were born. If our spell changed them enough that they were more human than demon, do you suppose that when they dispersed, they could have found their way back to human families? Through some kind of…reincarnation?”

“We have seen stranger things happen,” Vision said.

“That doesn’t explain their age,” Wanda muttered, thinking. “They were born before our Billy and Tommy were.”

“I can’t explain it,” Vision admitted. “But we barely understand what a ‘soul’ is.”

“I suppose not,” Wanda said.

“There’s really only one way to know for sure.” Vision hesitated. “You would know them, if you saw them.”

“I would,” Wanda agreed. “I’m sure of it.”

“Then you will have to go and talk to them.”

Wanda didn’t answer right away. She wanted to say that she felt excited at the prospect, but she felt nothing but trepidation. Fear, even. She wanted her babies back—god, she wanted them back so badly—but even if they were everything she hoped, they could never be a family again. She’d have to settle with knowing that they were alive. 

That would be enough, though. It would have to be. “Tomorrow,” she decided. “We’ll have to get Tommy out of juvie, he can’t stay there…and Billy walks by the mansion on his way home from school. I’ll talk to him then.”

“Good.” Vision squeezed Wanda’s hand, and she returned the gesture, smiling a little.

“Let’s go and find our sons.”


	2. Chapter Two

Billy was walking on glass.

Every little thing made him jumpy, made his eyes dart down to his hands to check that they weren’t crackling with energy. After what happened with Kesler…well, he had a lot of thoughts about that, most of which he was not in a headspace to deal with right now. 

The guy was a bully, and Billy had meant to fight back. He wanted to say that he didn’t feel bad about it, but…hell. All of that anger, and fear, and anxiety, seeing that kid, all of it had come rushing to the surface in one fateful accident, and then he had nearly killed a person. It scared the crap out of him. 

He’d never experienced anything like it, but in the days since, he’d had a few more incidents. Accidents, although not nearly as extreme. He hadn’t tried using his powers on purpose yet. His whole life, he’d wanted this so badly, and yet now he’d finally got his wish it was all he could do to keep them in check. 

If only the Scarlet Witch could see him now. He doubted this was what she’d meant when she told him to stand up for himself. 

Billy paused when he reached the mansion, passing it as he did on his way to school. It had been four days now and he still hadn’t brought himself to try going in. What would he even say? He doubted Wanda would even remember him, let alone allow him inside the mansion. They had defences in place to keep the public out, anyway, it wasn’t like he could just go up and knock.

Still, he couldn’t shake the feeling that the only person he wanted to talk to about this was inside that building. Nobody in his normal life would understand, but _she_ would. She had to, right? She had told him he was special. This had to mean something, and if anyone would understand what he was going through, it would be her.

“Back again?” Wanda asked, sounding close by.

Billy whirled around in alarm, crossing his arms as he did so just in case his powers acted up again. Thankfully, nothing happened. “Oh!” he exclaimed, realising he had just technically been staring at her house. That wasn’t weird, right? Avengers Mansion was basically a tourist stop. “Sorry, I didn’t—how long have you been sitting there?”

Wanda was seated on the low brick wall a few feet down from the gate, the same wall that Billy had been sitting on when she first met him. Ironically, she had not come out here with the intention of talking to him, just to gather her thoughts for the trip they were about to make, and along he had come, like he’d sensed her thinking of him. Perhaps it was fate, maybe she’d somehow altered the probability of him walking by here—or maybe she was just lucky. Either way, she was in no way prepared, but hopefully that wasn’t obvious.

“Not long,” she said, which wasn’t technically a lie, although she’d been there longer than he had. “It was Billy, wasn’t it?” she asked, not standing yet.

“Oh wow, you…remember me?” Billy asked, a little flustered.

“Of course.” Wanda couldn’t help but smile. “It isn’t every day someone tells you you’re their favourite Avenger, after all.” 

This response caused Billy’s face to turn red, and Wanda laughed a little, getting to her feet, although she kept her distance from him. She’d been mulling over what she was going to say, although she hadn’t thought she’d need to say it so soon, which was what made it surprising when Billy suddenly blurted it out before she could.

“I’m really glad you’re here,” he said. “I’ve been wanting to talk to you, the craziest things have been happening and I have no idea what I’m doing. I mean, I kind of know what I’m doing, I just don’t know how—sorry, just, can we talk? I had this whole speech planned but I’m kind of freaking out right now.”

Wanda blinked in surprise. She’d been so caught up in her own nerves it was hard to imagine what Billy must have been going through these past few days. Well, no, it wasn’t hard to imagine; she’d gone through it herself, after all, but at least she’d had Pietro by her side while she was discovering her powers. She wondered if Billy had told anyone yet.

“Of course,” she repeated gently. Then she hesitated. “The truth is, I’ve been hoping to talk to you as well, Billy. There’s really no easy way to say this, but…I heard about John Kesler.”

Billy froze, the colour draining from his face. Wanda almost extended a hand, but then thought better of it, keeping it at her side. “Don’t worry, your secret is safe. The Avengers just have…we monitor the news and other channels for signs of superhuman activity.”

“It was an accident,” Billy rushed to explain himself. “He was trying to pick on this kid and I tried to confront him like you said, but then I just…I didn't know what I was capable of, and then he was—”

“—It’s alright.” This time, Wanda did reach out to reassure him, although her hand stopped a few inches shy of his shoulder. “May I walk with you, Billy?” she asked, inclining her head in the direction Billy had been walking. He was quick to give a yes, and the two began at a slow pace, quickly becoming unnoticeable amongst the crowd of pedestrians that bustled down the street. “You don’t have to make excuses,” she continued. “I know you would never have willingly hurt somebody.”

Billy didn’t look at her while they walked. Why she would have such faith in him despite such a short meeting, he didn’t know. He let out a long exhale. “I just wanted to push him away, make him stop, and then suddenly he was on the floor, unconscious.”

“Does anyone else know?” Wanda asked.

Billy shook his head. “I haven’t even told my parents,” he admitted. “There were some other kids around with Kesler…but I don’t think they realised exactly what happened, at least not yet.”

“And how are you feeling?” 

At this question, Billy’s step faltered, and he finally made himself glance at Wanda. She was studying him closely, concern a hallmark of her face. He could not have known for what it was she searched, but in that moment, he knew the depth of her care, and it put him at peace. “The truth is, I’m scared,” he admitted quietly. “It feels so stupid, because I’ve wanted this my whole life. I used to dream about having powers and being a superhero like you. And I know—like, logically—that I can learn to control this, that I can figure it out, but it was just…so easy to hurt someone. What if next time it’s someone I care about, you know? What if next time—”

He couldn’t bring himself to finish the thought, and Wanda, sensing his unease, answered instead. “It is an incredibly isolating feeling,” she admitted, “but I promise you, it will not be forever. I have been exactly where you are right now. When my powers first manifested…” She stopped, but only for a moment. “When I was young, I accidentally set fire to an entire village. I don’t know what I would have done without my brother.”

To say Billy was surprised would have been an understatement. A lot of the Wanda Maximoff’s past was known to the public—namely her and Pietro’s history with the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants—but this was new, and he had once considered himself an expert on all things Scarlet Witch. She’d always seemed so collected, so in control of herself. It was hard to imagine that she had once been just as scared and inexperienced as he was. “Wow…” 

“I don’t mean to distract from what you’re going through,” Wanda quickly added. “But I want you to know you’re not alone. Every mutant—every powered person—goes through this at one point.”

“Do you think I should tell my parents?” Billy asked then, looking hesitant.

Wanda looked away, and smiled slightly. “You probably know the answer to that better than me,” she said. “But personally, I find it’s always best to be honest with the people who love you. Can you think of any reason why you shouldn’t?”

“I mean, they’re not anti-mutant, if that’s what you mean.” Billy laughed a little. “Although they probably wouldn’t let me drop out of school to become a superhero, which is like, the whole point of having powers.” Wanda raised her eyebrows, and Billy added, “No, they’re great. It’s just that they already have so much on their plates; they both work full time and I’ve got two brothers who are a lot younger than me. I don’t want to give them one more thing. They’d worry about me, you know? A lot.”

“Oh, Billy…” Wanda gave a little laugh, which surprised him. “Well. Given who my father is, I’m probably the last person who should be giving advice on talking to one’s parents, but…” 

She trailed off, and for a moment, it looked as though she wasn’t going to continue, but then she pressed on, catching Billy off-guard when she said, “but the truth is, I’m a mother too, and if nothing else, I can promise you that your parents are going to worry about you no matter what you do, for the rest of your life, just as they will for your brothers. It’s their job, and one that I’m sure they wear with pride. They sound like good people, your parents…”

Billy realised she was watching at him now, and her face was hard to read. She sounded almost melancholy, but she looked tense. “They are,” he said at last. “Definitely.”

Wanda’s shoulders slumped, relieved. “It sounds like you have your answer, then, although I wouldn’t rush things if you’re nervous. You have time.”

“Yeah…” It was Billy’s turn to trail off. He stopped walking, realising they had reached a corner he needed to take to get to school. “Hey, um, Wanda? Thanks for talking to me about this.”

He hesitated, wondering if he should like, try to shake her hand? She answered that question for him when she tentatively placed a hand on his shoulder. “You’re very welcome, Billy. It’s the least I can do.” Wanda looked down the street, and Billy wondered what she was thinking. “I know you’re still figuring out the exact nature your abilities, but if you need advice or help, I believe that our powers are similar enough that I might be able to provide some sort of formal train—”

“—Yes, I will become your apprentice and join the Avengers,” Billy blurted out, catching Wanda off-guard. “I actually have some ideas for a costume—I was thinking, because my powers look like lightning, I kind of based it off of Thor’s. What do you think of ‘Asgardian’ as a name, is that too on-the-nose? You know what, I’ll wait to figure out a name, but I’ve got this old red cape at home that I think I can modify…” 

They stared at one another for a second. And then, as one, they started laughing. “Forgive me,” Wanda said, wiping a tear from her eye.

“Sorry, I got ahead of myself. But just out of curiosity, do you have any openings?” Billy asked, only half-joking.

“We might have to put joining the Avengers on hold,” Wanda admitted. “I can’t have you dropping out of school to become a superhero even if it _is_ the whole point of having powers—but if you do need help figuring this out…here, wait a moment…” She dug into her pocket, searching for something to write on, before scribbling her phone number and handing it to him. “Call me any time—and please feel free to come by the mansion if you ever need to. I’ll ask Jarvis to whitelist you from the security protocols.”

“I’m for real getting whitelisted at Avengers Mansion?” Billy asked, a little starstruck. Wanda nodded—she wasn’t sure how she would explain that one to the others if Billy did decide to come around, but she would cross that bridge when she came to it. 

“The truth is, Billy, I think you’re doing just fine,” Wanda said. “I won’t presume to suggest that you _need_ my help—but I want you to know that it’s yours, anyway. Whatever you need.”

Billy wasn’t so sure about that—he didn’t feel like he was doing fine where his powers were concerned, but he certainly felt a damn sight better than he had when he left home this morning. “Thanks, Wanda. I guess…I guess I’ll be seeing you around, then.”

“I look forward to it.” Billy reached out a hand and Wanda shook it. She wanted to hug him, but she didn’t. “Please take care, Billy.”

Once he was headed off on his way to school, Wanda finally relaxed. The wave of exhaustion caught up with her, and she allowed herself to watch him go for a few more moments before finally turning back toward the mansion.

Letting out a long, deep breath, Wanda ran her hands down her face.

 

 

* * *

 

Vision was standing alone in his room when Wanda reached it, although she lingered before entering, watching him for a moment while leaning on the doorframe. He was surrounded by displays, rapidly typing something into a holographic keyboard, but he stopped what he was doing when he heard her enter. “Wanda,” he said, turning to face her, “I’ve looked further into the facility that’s holding Tommy. I am afraid it’s worse than we thought. It—”

He stopped dead when he registered her tear-streaked face. She was not currently crying, although her nose was still red. “I saw Billy,” she said.

“Oh.” Vision didn’t move from where he was standing. “Oh, I see.”

He didn’t say more. Couldn’t bring himself to, at least not immediately, but Wanda didn’t answer either, neither of them daring to speak until Vision finally broke the silence. “Was—”

Wanda nodded.

It wasn’t often that Vision found himself rendered completely speechless. He wasn’t sure what he was feeling. It wasn’t surprise. He was…happy? Well, certainly, but it was as if all the air had been let out of a balloon; he’d been holding in the apprehension for so long that he hadn’t had time to prepare for what came after. 

There was…maybe disappointment, too, which did surprise him. He’d known that this was something Wanda would have to do herself, but it wasn’t until right in that moment that he realised what that meant he was missing out on. Wanda had gone and spoken with their son. He’d been in here on monitor duty.

“How…is he?” he asked, finally.

Wanda let out a teary laugh, and she finally entered the room, shutting the door behind her. “He’s a kind, caring boy with a wonderful family who love him.”

Vision visibly relaxed. “Thank goodness.”

The implicit, _he doesn’t need us_ , hung in the air, but that was a good thing, and they both knew it. Wanda hurried on before either of them could dwell. “He got into the confrontation with Kesler because he was trying to protect another student. I think we’re lucky he didn’t attract as much attention as he could have.”

“I’ve already doctored Kesler’s hospital records and erased the footage I found of Billy using his powers,” Vision said, which made Wanda smile.

“He’s still figuring them out—it’s a difficult time, especially for a teen—but he’s going to be okay. I’m certain of it. I told him he could come by the mansion if he needed to talk.”

That would raise some eyebrows among the rest of the Avengers, but Vision could not have cared less. This had nothing to do with them. “I’ll make sure to adjust the security accordingly,” he said.

“Thank you, Vizh,” Wanda murmured. Now all that was left was to find Tommy—because if Billy really was their long lost son, then that meant her other baby was only a state over waiting for her to find him too. For the first time since entering, Wanda’s gaze was drawn up to the displays Vision had been monitoring. She paused then, tense, realising that he’d been trying to tell her something about Tommy when she arrived. 

She hurried forward, and Vision shifted slightly to give her space in front of the monitors. Most of the screens were filled with text that was scrolling too quickly for her to read, but she caught what looked like a copy of Tommy’s criminal record and a report on the incident at his school; there wasalso a screen showing his booking photograph. “What were you going to tell me before?” 

At this, Vision’s expression turned grim. “This information is not available to the public; I was able to obtain it by infiltrating the facility’s secure servers and extracting their files.” As he spoke, one of the screens stopped scrolling, showing what looked like a court order. “Tommy has done time in juvie in the past for multiple offences—shoplifting, minor property damage, street fighting—but this is his first incarceration since his powers became known. He originally turned himself in to the Police Department and was held in remand throughout his trial, after which he was transferred to Springfield Juvenile Penitentiary, where he is currently being held. As I mentioned, the facility has been equipped with power dampeners and his guards have Mandroid X armour.”

“That sounds like a lot of work to go through for someone who turned himself in,” Wanda said coldly.

“It gets worse.” Vision waved his hand, causing the screens to change again. “The place didn’t need time to make accommodations for Tommy; it was already equipped. I began to wonder how alocal juvenile hall came to have that kind of technology. It turns out, he’s not the first powered youth to be detained there.”

He brought up a picture of the facility; an arrangement of large concrete buildings sprawled across the campus, with several large fields on one end, and the whole thing surrounded by electrified fences. Wanda set her jaw. “The facilities and equipment for the powered children wasn’t paid for by the state,” Vision continued. “I had to track the money through a series of offshore accounts, but once I traced the source, it appears that they have been receiving grants from the U.S. Army for some time now.”

“Why would the army care about someone like Tommy?” Wanda asked, looking at him sharply. “And why go to all that effort to hide it?”

“I don’t believe this project is officially sanctioned,” Vision said. “I am not sure yet just how far up it goes, but the previous detainees to be involved all had powers of a destructive nature; one girl could create powerful concussive blasts. Another boy could control fire. We already know that Tommy can use his speed to manipulate molecules and cause an explosion, even vaporise matter. I’ve already looked into the other children,” Vision added, sensing the question on Wanda’s tongue before she could ask it. “They are no longer being held at the facility. I…have not been able to find them yet.”

“But what about their parents?” Wanda demanded. “Surely somebody must have noticed; it’s not the Raft, for goodness’ sake, it’s juvie. Children don’t get imprisoned for life.”

“These aren’t children from loving families, Wanda,” Vision said. “These are children of the state, or whose parents haven’t followed up on them. They have been slipping under the radar, until now.”

“Vision, what are they doing to my baby?” Wanda asked softly, placing a hand over Tommy’s picture.

“They are trying to weaponise his powers.” Vision’s voice was measured and calculated, but Wanda knew him well enough to recognise the disgust he was hiding. “I do not know what that entails, at least not entirely, but—”

“We’re leaving,” Wanda said, drawing her hand away from the monitor. A few ribbons of scarlet formed around her fingers, an iceberg tip to the rage which dwelled within her. “Right now. We’re getting him out of there, and then I’m going to burn it to the ground.”

“I agree with you, Wanda, but we can be smart about this,” Vision placated, gently placing a hand on her shoulder. “I’ve already gathered enough information to have the operation shut down if we bring it to light. If we just go barging in there there is no telling what you could—”

“I don’t care!” Up until now, Wanda had been strikingly calm, but with this outburst, she rounded on him, knocking his hand away and startling him. “They’re experimenting on children, it’s the least that they deserve. They have my son!”

“They have _our_ son,” Vision shot back, for the first time letting his composure start to fade. “I’m worried about him too, but I am also worried about _you_. You’ve worked so hard to make the public trust you, but something like this, all they will see is destruction with you at the centre of it.”

“Then why don’t you just have Agatha erase my memories again?” Wanda demanded. “Then you won’t need to worry about me acting out emotionally!”

Vision flinched as though she’d struck him.

Wanda immediately knew that she’d gone too far. She visibly deflated, reaching out a hand and then withdrawing it again. “Vision, I’m sorry, that wasn’t—”

“You don’t need to apologise,” Vision said, looking away. “Just please do not make the mistake of thinking you are the only one affected by this.”

“I don’t think that—really, I don’t. I know you, V.” This time, Wanda did take his hand. She forced herself to calm down. 

Sighing, Vision put his other hand over hers. “Wanda…” He hesitated, meeting her gaze. “I didn’t say it before, but I am _truly_ sorry about what happened. I wish I had told you sooner than I did. I told myself I was sparing you from pain; in truth, a lot of the time I envied you your ignorance, but it was robbing you of your ability to grieve.”

Wanda bumped her forehead against his shoulder, wrapping her free hand around his arm. “I wasn’t the only one,” she pointed out. “What happened to us, it wasn’t healthy. Neither of us got to deal with this the way we should have, but Vision, you _found_ them. We have a second chance to do right by them.” As she finished speaking, her eyes fell on Tommy’s picture again, and her grip on Vision tightened. 

“For now, our priority has to be getting Tommy out,” Vision said. “He’s the only inmate currently involved in the program—then we can tackle the rest with the other Avengers.”

The other Avengers. Wanda had barely spoken with them in the last few days, but she couldn’t keep avoiding that forever. She wasn’t sure she had finished being angry with them yet, but…well, to be frank, she’d had more important things on her mind. “Yes,” she said finally, letting go of Vision’s arm. “I’ll go and get the car ready.”

They were on their way to the mansion’s garage when they ran into Tony. He was suited up, helmet under his arm, although he appeared to be headed toward the Quinjet hangar. He stopped when he saw them, halting in front of Wanda. “Wanda, I’m glad I found you. I was hoping to be wheels up in twenty. Hank’s going to meet us there.”

Wanda faltered, dumbfounded for a moment. Had they missed an emergency alert? That didn’t make sense, considering Tony didn’t seem to be in a hurry, not to mention the fact that he was only addressing her and not Vision. He was still looking at her expectantly, and she franticly wracked her mind for whatever it was he was referring to. 

Tony, to his credit, realised his mistake and helped her out. “The United Nations address,” he prompted. “We’re speaking to the delegation today.”

“Oh!” Wanda had to mentally add the dates up twice. She’d completely forgotten she said she’d go to that; it had been weeks ago. “Oh, lord, was that today? I can’t believe it completely slipped my mind.”

Tony glanced between her and Vision, sensing she was distracted. It wasn’t like Wanda to simply forget things. “Is everything okay, Wanda?”

“Yes, I mean, no, actually,” Wanda said, “Everything’s fine, we just have a…a personal commitment that we can’t delay. I’m so sorry, Tony, am I down to speak?”

“Hey, don’t even worry about it,” Tony assured her. “I’m doing all the talking, we just needed a few extra representatives from the Avengers for questions. I’ll ask Jan and Steve if one of them can come along instead, I don’t think they’re doing anything today.” Then he paused. “Hey, whatever it is, you sure you don’t need a hand? You know how much I love blowing off the UN.”

“Oh, no, it’s nothing like that,” Wanda promised, glancing at Vision. “We have it under control, although you’ll probably find out soon enough.”

Tony gave a small laugh. “That sounds cryptic,” he said, adjusting his helmet as he turned to continue toward the hangar. “I’ll see you later, then. Let me know how it goes.” 

“Thank you so much, Tony. Please tell whoever fills in for me that I owe them one!” she called after him. He gave her a thumbs up.

She turned to Vision again, who shrugged.

 

* * *

 

“Mach 4, Shepherd,” the man said, sounding bored. He scrawled some more notes onto the clipboard he was writing on without even looking up when Tommy skidded to a halt in front of him. “That’s even slower than the last lap. We both know you’re capable of more than this. I’d like you to go again.”

“I’m fucking tired,” Tommy said, yanking off the suction cups affixed to his chest and tossing aside the device they were connected to. Next to the man, a large square machine started beeping shrilly as it lost track of Tommy’s vitals. The sound hurt his ears. “We’ve been at this for hours. Can’t I at least have some water?”

The man—Tommy still hadn’t bothered to learn any of their names—looked disapproving. “Not if you’re going to keep damaging my equipment, no. Put your monitor back on.”

Tommy scowled, but exhaustion took the heat out of it as he grabbed the device and started attaching the nodes again. The guy—Davies? Daniels?—nodded to one of his associates, who tossed him a bottle of water. 

Tommy licked his lips as it was offered to him the way one might dangle a carrot in front of a donkey. He had to stop himself from snatching it out of the guy’s—Delaney?—hand, instead reaching for it slowly. It wasn’t like he could have used his powers—as soon as he finished running the track, or blowing up whatever material it was they wanted to test out on him, the dampeners came back on, stifling his speed and making his head feel fuzzy. Honestly, he couldn’t tell if that was a side-effect of whatever they used to turn off his powers or if that was just how the world looked for him now. His senses, able to perceive everything at lightning-fast speed, were inextricably tied to his powers. Without them, everything was dulled. It felt like being stuck in quicksand.

He tried not to think about that, though, quickly uncapping the bottle and draining the whole thing in one go. It actually made him a little sick, hitting his empty stomach. “I can’t concentrate on running when you keep turning my powers on and off,” he muttered, dropping the bottle. 

“I need you to speak louder, Thomas,” said Doctor Douchebag, still writing on his clipboard.

“I said I can’t fucking run if I only get my powers when you need them,” Tommy said, subconsciously feeling the bracers around his arms. “Seriously, I’m not gonna try and escape. This isn’t necessary and it’s messing with your results. I thought the whole point of this was to understand my powers.”

“You can have your powers back once you’ve demonstrated you can use them without accidentally vaporising a building full of people.” The man still didn’t raise his eyes, which was good, because Tommy didn’t want him to see how much his words affected him. Nobody at the school got hurt, but that had been a sheer stroke of luck. He stared resolutely at the ground, reminding himself that that was why he’d come here. He had to believe he’d made the right decision. 

Still…it had been nearly two weeks and nobody had so much as had a conversation with him that didn’t involve some test or another, or telling him to go somewhere. He never got to make phone calls, and on the few occasions where he was allowed to interact with the other inmates, he was heavily monitored. There was a television in the room where he ate his meals, but he never got to pick the channel. This whole place felt off, and he was starting to wonder what he’d gotten himself into.

Tommy realised that Douchebag was speaking again.

“…since you’re so unbelievably exhausted from a few simple laps, we’ll put this on hold for the rest of the day.”

_Wow, I feel so bad about myself_. “Cool.”

“But Shepherd, you need to push yourself harder if we’re going to make any progress at all.”

_Cool, cool_. _Can I go now?_ “Alright.” 

“Do you understand?” The man finally looked up at Tommy, although he still seemed bored. “Because I don’t think you do.”

“Hey, when am I going to see my parents?” Tommy asked, ignoring the question in favour of removing the monitor again now that the testing was officially over.

It was hard to tell, but Tommy could have sworn the guy cracked a smug sort of smile. “Whenever they decide to visit you.” 

Yeah, well. That had to happen eventually, right? It wasn’t like they had anything better to do. Still, Tommy didn’t reply, instead opting to toss the device into one of the equipment boxes and start making his way off the track back to his cell block. 

“Did I say you could leave?” the man demanded.

“I don’t know,” Tommy said, turning and walking backwards. “I stopped listening ‘cause I got tired of looking at your ugly face.”

Then he felt a sharp jolt of pain from his ankle monitor, and Tommy let out a startled yell, stumbling backwards and falling onto his butt. “ _Ow_!”

Huh. That was definitely new.

Tommy rubbed his ankle where it had zapped him, refusing to look up as Doctor Douchebag approached him again. From that angle, Tommy realised he was carrying the remote control he used when he turned off Tommy’s power dampeners. Son of a bitch.

“Listen, Thomas,” the man said, offering a hand up that Tommy pretended not to see. “Despite what you may think, we’re doing all of this to _help_ you. I have things I’d rather be doing too, but you’ve already proven that you need help. These tests, keeping your powers under lockdown, you have to see that as you currently are, you’re too dangerous to be out in the world. Without us, you’re never going to be able to get a job or live a normal life. We’re studying your powers so we can help you find something useful to do with them once you leave this place. Think of the military applications you could have.”

Tommy almost listened, except the phrasing of that last sentence made his skin crawl. Still, what else could he actually do with his life? Even if he could get his powers under wraps so as not to hurt anyone, most jobs would be impossible without a way to turn them off. They would quite literally drive him mad.

“I need you to come with me to the medical block for a blood test and a physical before you can go back to your cell,” the man continued, unfazed by Tommy’s lack of response.

“Whatever,” Tommy muttered, letting go of his ankle. He was about to stand up when they were interrupted by the arrival of one of the other research assistants. 

“Excuse me, Dr. Douglas—” Oh, _that’s_ what it was. “—Shepherd has a visitor,” she said, doubling over and panting like she had just run here all the way from the admin block. 

“I do?” Tommy asked, disbelieving.

“It’s outside visiting hours,” Douchebag said matter-of-factly. “Tell them to come back—”

“She was, ah, quite insistent, actually,” said the aide, shifting anxiously from side to side. 

_Mom!_ Despite himself, Tommy let himself feel relief. It wasn’t that he hadn’t believed she would come and visit him, it was just…well, she never had all the other times he’d been in juvie, and she’d been so disapproving when she first found out he was a mutant. Well, clearly he’d been mistaken. Tommy shot a smug look in Douchebag’s direction as he got to his feet. 

“Then I’ll talk to her,” Douchebag replied, sounding unimpressed. “Please escort Mr. Shepherd back to his cell while I—”

“She says she’ll only talk to Thomas,” she insisted. “And, er, sir? I think you should listen to her. I’ll explain later,” she added, casting a suspicious look in Tommy’s direction. The meaning was clear enough: _when he’s gone_.

Tommy didn’t even notice. “Then I guess I’ve got somewhere to be,” he said, starting to walk again. His step felt lighter than it had in weeks.

Both staff accompanied him, since for some reason he needed an official escort everywhere he went in this prison. It was not a comfortable silence, but it lasted until they reached the visitor’s centre. Tommy had never actually been there before, but he knew the drill. “Right through here,” the aide said, gesturing to the door into the room. 

Tommy didn’t hesitate before opening it. “Mom—”

Wanda spun around, caught off-guard.

It was immediately obvious that the woman in the room was not Mary Shepherd. She was taller with slightly darker skin and curly brown hair, and Tommy was almost certain he had never seen her before. He hung in the doorway, a little embarrassed by the mistake.

For a moment, neither of them spoke. 

It was Tommy who broke the silence. “Er, okay,” he said, looking over her again. “Am I in the right room?” Now that he’d had a moment, there _was_ something familiar about her, something he couldn’t quite put his finger on. 

Wanda swallowed. Tommy was the spitting image of Billy, although he was currently dressed in white prison scrubs and dripping with sweat. “You are, don’t worry,” she assured him, looking over him properly. Her expression hardened when it fell upon the bracers he was wearing, and she glared daggers at the two staff members who were still lingering outside the door. “Get those things off of him,” she ordered sharply. 

“Ma’am,” the man offered weakly. Wanda’s eyes narrowed. “The power dampeners aren’t hurting him, they’re for your own protection.”

“Then I’ll do it myself,” Wanda said, exasperated. She waved her hand, and Tommy felt the bracers open with a soft _click_. 

He watched in awe as they fell to the ground, and he stretched his arm in relief, already feeling the rush of his senses returning. It gave him enough reflex to catch Douchebag’s eye as Wanda slammed the door with another wave of her hand, and offer him a noncommittal shrug. 

Wanda’s harsh exterior immediately lifted when she turned her attention back to him. “It’s Thomas, right?” she asked gently.

“Tommy,” he replied, rubbing his wrists.

Wanda’s chest ached. They both still used the same nicknames. “Why don’t you sit down, Tommy?” she asked, causing a chair from one of the nearby tables to pull out on its own.

He had to admit, it was kind of nice being called Tommy again. Still, he eyed this whole situation with suspicion. “Uh.” He came further into the room, but didn’t sit down yet. Now that he’d seen her powers, he realised where he recognised her from; this was the _Scarlet Witch,_ a freaking _Avenger_. 

She was also Quicksilver’s sister. Tommy briefly wondered if he was here too. Could he ask that? No, that was probably rude. “I don’t mean to be rude, because like, thanks?” he said, holding up his now unrestricted hands, “but also, what the hell?”

Wanda chuckled. “I imagine you must have questions. First of all, my name is Wanda.”

“Oh, yeah, no, like, I figured that,” Tommy said. “Huge fan, and all that. I just mean like, what the _hell_ ,” he reiterated, gesturing vaguely. He was defensive, Wanda realised. Wary. Well, that was understandable, considering his situation. Just the thought of it filled her with disgust. 

“I wanted to talk to you,” she said at last. “Are they, ah, treating you alright? Are they feeding you enough?”

Tommy zipped forward then, ending up in the seat with a _whoosh_. He sat with one foot on the chair, propping his leg against the table. “Okay, um, can I rephrase my question?” he asked. “What’s it to you?”

Wanda sighed, sitting down opposite him. “I heard, we heard, about the incident at your school.” She saw Tommy freeze up, and quickly added, “I know it was an accident, don’t worry—”

“Why would you think that?” Tommy asked, frowning. It was, but she seemed awfully confident for somebody who had met him for the first time in a prison.

“Because…” Wanda paused. “You could easily have run away, and you didn’t. You tried to do the right thing by turning yourself in. That takes courage.”

Yeah, and look where it had landed him; locked up with a bunch of shady scientists trying to use his blood to make, like, bombs or whatever. “Well, don’t read into it,” he muttered. “Listen, lady, I appreciate the pep talk but I’m really not interested in being anyone’s sidekick, so you can tell the Avengers—”

Wanda’s expression softened. “Tommy, the rest of the Avengers don’t know we’re here. It’s just me, and the Vision. Nobody’s trying to force you into anything; I’m just here to get you out.”

Tommy frowned. “Wait, out? Out of here?” he asked, gesturing to their surroundings. “Why?”

Wanda leaned in closer. “My people, the Avengers, we’ve been investigating this place. The researchers here are involved with a secret military program that takes young people with powers and finds ways to turn them into living weapons, and you’re not the first. Children have been disappearing.”

“That’s…” Tommy rubbed his head. “Huh.”

“We have the paper trail to prove it,” Wanda continued. “And Tommy, I won’t let them do that to you. I know you’ve only been here a short time, so this must come as a shock, but—”

“It’s not that.” Tommy looked away, thinking. As soon as Wanda had said it, he’d known she wasn’t lying. He’d known since he got here that these people…they were trying to prepare him for something. He could believe this, it was just…he didn’t want to. He’d _chosen_ this. Sure, he didn’t ask to get sent here, but he could have run away after his trial and he didn’t, because he’d wanted to do the right thing. His parents had told him this was the way to do that. They’d have known if something suspicious was going on, wouldn’t they? They wouldn’t have encouraged him to go somewhere that would make him disappear. 

Not…not knowingly, at least, but they could have checked in on him, couldn’t they?

He clenched his fist. “It’s just, what does it matter?” he asked then, looking back to Wanda, who seemed taken aback. “I can’t go back home. This is all I have.”

“That’s not true,” Wanda said, not even trying to pretend she wasn’t invested. “I’m sure…I’m sure your parents would rather you be back with them, especially after learning the truth about this place.”

“If they cared about that, they could have found out for themselves. They could’ve come and visit, so where are they?” Tommy asked, surprising even himself with the bitterness in his tone. Maybe this wasn’t about his last two weeks in juvie. Maybe this was about fifteen years of being brushed off and ignored, having to get into street fights just to force them to pay attention to him. Maybe he was being crazy, but it shouldn’t take the goddamn Avengers to get them to actually parent their child. 

Wanda felt a lump in her throat. She hadn’t kept her disdain for Tommy’s parents a secret from Vision, but they were still his parents; he must have loved them, despite how badly they’d let him down when he ended up in this place. She didn’t have the right to take him away from them, but these were _Tommy’s_ words. She exhaled softly. “I don’t know,” she said at last. “But I know what it’s like to feel like you have nowhere to go. Tommy, if you wanted, you could always come with me. We have a lot of rooms in Avengers’ Mansion; one of them can be yours. No strings attached.”

Tommy tensed up, wringing his hands under the table. “Why would you do that?” he asked tersely. “You don’t even know me.”

_Because you deserve a home. Because you belong with your family_ , Wanda wanted to shout it to the world, but she didn’t. She didn’t want to confuse him or drive him away. Instead, she gave a little smile. “Because it would drive my brother mad to know there’s somebody out there who’s younger and faster than him, and that’s a hard opportunity to pass up.”

Tommy snorted. He’d always kind of wished he had a brother. “I am great at annoying people, I’ll give you that,” he admitted. Then he paused before adding, “So is this like a breakout, or what? Do I have to do anything?”

At this, Wanda looked around. “Just some light blackmail, but it’s okay because we’re the good guys. Don’t tell Captain America,” she added with a wink, and Tommy snickered. Maybe the Avengers were cool after all.

Wanda got to her feet, and Tommy pushed himself away from the table so he could grab his ankle monitor and phase it off his leg. _Good luck zapping me now, losers._ He hurled it at the wall, where it left a dent, and he made a mock cringe. It felt really damn good having his powers back.

Nobody dared to interrupt them on their way back out of the complex; whatever Wanda and Vision had said when they first arrived had scared the rest of the staff pretty thoroughly, but Tommy proceeded to flip a few birds on the way out anyway. They met up with Vision; he appeared to be mid-argument with one of the administrators in the entry area. Tommy had zipped ahead of Wanda, but here he stopped when the two of them looked up.

Vision’s face didn’t betray the emotions he was feeling when he saw Tommy in person, but he locked eyes with Wanda briefly and she gave him a small smile, nodding slightly as she passed Tommy and joined Vision at the counter, staring down the person on the other side of the plastic. “We’ll be leaving now, if you don’t mind,” she said. “But I trust you understand the situation well enough to expect that you’ll be hearing from us soon?”

Tommy raised his eyebrows as he zipped over to the exit, looking out over the innocuous footpath that lead to the parking lot. Honestly, when he imagined finally leaving after this stint, this was not how he’d pictured it going. 

“Tommy is going to be staying at the mansion for a while,” Wanda said, as they headed over to the doorway too.

Vision didn’t answer immediately, but he nodded at Tommy, who waved awkwardly. “It’s nice to meet you, Tommy,” Vision said. “I hope you will enjoy your stay.”

“Um, thanks,” Tommy said, scratching the back of his head. “Ditto.”

Wanda had expected him to argue over taking the car back to the mansion—Pietro absolutely hated travelling by road, finding it obnoxiously slow—so it surprised her when he settled into the back seat without complaint. She understood a few moments later once they were speeding off; he was fast asleep the moment his head touched the window.

* * *

 

“You know, you guys,” Clint said, sitting down at the table in the meeting room, “When Tony mentioned Wanda had piked on the UN to do a personal thing with Vision, we all kind of thought you two were finally getting back together. Not bringing home a stray.”

Normally, Wanda would have apologised for promising a stranger residence in the mansion without consulting the team first, but as things were, she didn’t feel sorry. They’d shown Tommy to one of the guest rooms with only mild questioning from the other Avengers, but had quickly convened with them afterward to debrief. 

“If there is to be blame, it should go to me,” Vision said matter-of-factly. “I have been following Thomas’s situation for some time now. I apologise for not consulting with you sooner, but my most recent discovery revealed circumstances to be time sensitive, we acted accordingly, and he currently has nowhere else to go.”

Thankfully, nobody seemed to have made a connection between Tommy and their missing children, although Scott did comment on how much he reminded him of Pietro.

Out of everyone, Steve was the one who had said the least so far; he listened patiently as Vision recounted his work on the Avengers Fail-Safe Program, and his recent discoveries concerning Tommy’s ‘juvie’. Very notably, Vision said nothing regarding Wanda, Billy, or the things that connected Tommy to their family; they’d both decided to keep that to themselves, at least for now. 

“Vision, Wanda,” Steve said at last, “You were clearly acting in the boy’s best interests, and I can’t fault you for that, but there are going to be questions, especially considering he wasn’t officially released.”

“We’re bringing a military corruption case to light,” Vision replied. “Tommy will remain under the protection and custody of the Avengers until we can be sure he’s safe. Wanda and I will take personal responsibility for anything that happens.”

“I agree,” Steve said, “but we have to at least inform his parents that he’s here. Meanwhile, we’ll be looking into the other missing children.”

Their conversation was cut short when the door to the briefing room opened and in strode Tony, still clad in his armour. Janet was buzzing around his shoulder, still wasp-sized, but as they entered, she grew back up to her usual height to stand next to Kelsey and Jennifer, stretching.

“Jan, Tony,” Steve said, standing up to greet them. “How did the UN address go?” 

“Less interesting than everyone else’s day, from what I’ve heard,” Tony said, removing his helmet and covering up a yawn. “What’s this Jarvis is saying about a new houseguest?”

Wanda sighed as Vision began the story again to fill them in. It was clear the team wasn’t thrilled at not being brought in on something like this, but nobody had any serious objections. It was hardly the strangest thing an Avenger had ever done, and if nothing else, they seemed content to trust Wanda and Vision’s judgement, for which she was grateful. 

Wanda looked around the room; Clint and Scott had already moved on to arguing over the coffee machine, and Jennifer was quietly saying something to Jan while she listened to the debriefing. It was almost peaceful; nobody save Vision had even the faintest idea how profoundly the events of the last few days had affected her. All things considered, this day could have gone a lot worse. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> me: Why don’t u try writing in third person omniscient for this next fic so you can explore multiple characters’ perspectives and experiment with changing between POVs?  
> me @ me: ok but what if I did that _and then proceeded to spend like half the chapter in tommy’s head anyway like I always do?_ checkmate atheists  
>  me: oh shit
> 
> ....If you've read my Scarlet Witches fic this one probably looks like it's shaping up to be another "Shut Down Tommy's Juvie" plotline, which wasn't really what I set out to accomplish but eh? I'm not planning on focusing on it that much but we'll see, I guess.
> 
> Anyway, thank you so much for reading this chapter! Hopefully the next one won't take me five months!

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you very much for reading! All comments and kudos are greatly appreciated!


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